Page 3327 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 22 September 2015
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This is intended to enhance public information on governments’ responses to road safety and the implementation status of the national and jurisdictional road safety strategies.
Today I am tabling the ACT’s third annual report card on road safety. It is focused on the 2014 calendar year and includes performance data and information on key programs and other initiatives delivered or developed in 2014.
I would like to use this opportunity today to briefly mention some of the government’s achievements in 2014, as outlined in the report card. The ACT took an important step towards improving road safety for cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians with the completion in June 2014 of the Legislative Assembly inquiry into vulnerable road users. The inquiry resulted in 28 recommendations, including to trial motorcycle lane filtering and consider the introduction of a rule to require motorists to provide a minimum lateral distance when overtaking cyclists.
The Justice and Community Safety Directorate undertook consultation with key road user groups to develop the government response to the report on the inquiry. The government, in its response tabled in September 2014, agreed to 18 recommendations, agreed in principle to five recommendations and noted five recommendations.
At the end of the report card there is a table showing the implementation status of each of these recommendations. A traffic light system has been used to show the progress of each recommendation with comments included for each. Three recommendations are now complete or implemented as ongoing, 11 are well advanced, seven are commenced and progressing and just two are yet to commence. The remaining five recommendations are the ones which were noted in the government response rather than being agreed to.
The first completed recommendation called for the government to closely monitor the traffic conditions at the intersection of Athllon Drive and Beasley Street and provide a report to the Assembly. In March 2014 the Territory and Municipal Services Directorate introduced a reduced 60 kilometre an hour speed limit which operates between 3 pm and 3.30 pm on weekdays on Athllon Drive near Melrose High School. This was considered to be the most appropriate road safety treatment for this section of road. The variable speed limit has been signposted using static speed limit signs that include the time of day that the 60 kilometre an hour speed limit applies. An evaluation of the effectiveness of this improvement was tabled in the Assembly in February 2015. The evaluation found that travelling speeds were reduced and positive feedback was received regarding the implemented improvements.
The second completed recommendation was for the government to undertake a review of attitudinal components of driver licence testing, including current Australian driving tests, scientific literature and international experiences with a view to possible inclusion into ACT driving tests if appropriate. Attitudinal components of driver licence testing were reviewed by CARRS-Q in the context of a review of road ready, the ACT’s mandatory pre-learner driver training course. The review found that the road ready course is mostly consistent with best practice approach to road safety education. The review provided guidance on how to improve the attitudinal
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